The controlled implosion was scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday and was planned to lower the bridge's arches into the river. However after the detonation, the arches remained intact and did not fall into the river.

An AHTD official said the implosion was preceded by several structural cuts into the bridge's framework, which would then force the arches to collapse. After using a "man basket" to inspect the cuts and the steel, AHTD determined the implosion went as planned, but without the desired effect.

The AHTD then attempted to use cables to pull the arches into the river. After hours of attempts, the arches finally collapsed as originally planned.

The AHTD was facing a 10 a.m. deadline on Wednesday to complete the implosion, before the river had to be reopened to barge traffic. In the meantime, the department had a little fun with the failed implosion on their Twitter account: